Newcastle United are back in action on Sunday with another away clash in the Premier League.

This time, Eddie Howe's side travel to the Etihad Stadium to take on Manchester City, who are trying to secure the league title and keep it out of the clutches of Liverpool.

Newcastle's previous outing saw them take on Jurgen Klopp's side at St James' Park last weekend but they ended up losing 1-0 thanks to a goal from Reds midfielder Naby Keita.

Now that the Magpies are set to take on the reigning league champions away from home, it appears as though they have been dealt a crushing injury blow which could well have an impact on how Sunday's match goes.

What's the news?

Speaking in his latest press conference, Howe discussed the current injury situation regarding Fabian Schar.

The 44-year-old said: "We haven't seen him this week. We hope he'll be back to be available, but he's not trained yet. He got a knock on the top of his foot, so he went for a scan after the Liverpool game because it was swollen up but fortunately there's no fracture."

While it's positive to hear that there's no fracture in the defender's foot, it's still a worrying prospect for Newcastle fans to possibly not have him available to take on Pep Guardiola's side. Indeed, the fact that he hasn't trained this week isn't a good sign for his chances of being ready to take on City.

In terms of what he offers his team and what they will now be missing tomorrow, the 30-year-old has racked up 74 interceptions in the league this season at Newcastle, which is significantly higher than any other player in Howe's squad.

Schar also has the second-highest number of clearances (120) to his name, as well as the third-highest number of blocks (38). This highlights just how much of a defensive unit he has been for his team and why he will be a big miss for them tomorrow.

Taking into account how City have already scored 84 goals in the league last season and will be desperate to win all of their remaining matches to secure the league title after their disappointing exit from the Champions League in midweek, Newcastle may well need all the defensive strength they can muster.

Howe and all Toon supporters will undoubtedly be hoping that their side can pick up a positive result this time out and that Schar can make a recovery soon.

In other news: PIF can blow NUFC fans away with "aggressive" £29k-p/w star, he's better than Shelvey